Abrasive blast wheels now in use typically include a very expensive runnerhead having radiating slots therein in which a base of a throwing vane is locked. Such a blast wheel is clearly disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,583. A conventional runnerhead is in the form of a machined and case hardened cast steel member. The vanes are separately formed and are so locked in the grooves in the runnerheads so as to facilitate replacement.
An attempt has been made to form an inexpensive blast wheel by eliminating the machined and case hardened runnerhead through the casting of the vanes and the normal impeller in one piece as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,379. However, because the vanes must be replaced as they wear out, it is necessary to not only replace the vanes, but also the complete unit which includes the impeller at a high cost. Therefore, such a blast wheel construction is not commercially feasible in cases of high usage.